EDGE CORE MEMBER (ONLINE) APPLICATION

CORE MEMBER EXPECTATIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

Changing the youth world happens one teen at a time. Teens do not connect to programs; they
connect to people. The most effective way to influence teens is through relationships. Our goal is to develop leaders who will walk the journey to Christ with teens.

Edge Core Members are the heart and soul of the middle school youth ministry experience. One of the main tasks of Core Members is to lead small groups. In teams of two or three, Edge Core members facilitate small group discussions and activities during Edge Nights. Session plans should be distributed to Core Members in advance so that you can review and prepare each session for their small group. Edge Core Members typically remain with the same group of middle school youth throughout the entire year. This allows Core Members and middle school youth the opportunity to develop meaningful relationships. Other tasks for Core Members may include helping out with opening and closing prayers, performing skits, or giving witness/catechetical talks to the large group.

Basic Edge Ministry Requirements:

• A love for Christ and middle school youth.

• A desire to minister to middle school youth on a weekly basis.

• A willingness to serve as a Christian role model.

• A weekly commitment to Sunday liturgy.

Edge Core Member Commitments:

• Commit to Edge ministry and middle school youth for one year

• Attend annual Core Team retreat day and necessary Core Team meetings during the year, if applicable.

• Participate in the Core Team Training/Team Building sessions, if applicable for that year.

• Attend Edge Nights consistently. Relationships are built by spending time together. Your consistent attendance models a commitment to your faith.

• Commit to your parish’s weekly Edge night agenda.

Here is what that time may look like:

• Meeting a few days before Edge Night to review the lesson, and decide who is speaking, and how the night will progress.

• Meet an hour or two before Edge Night, we'll have a quick Core meeting to review night’s plan.

• Welcome, greet, and talk to youth.

• Focus on roles for the night and ministering to the youth.

• Say goodbye, get to know youth waiting for their parents, and greet parents picking up their son or daughter.

• Review the night. Distribute and discuss next week’s Edge Night.

• Work with a partner to run small groups, which may include small group discussions, simple projects, and other small group activities. To lead a successful small group, you should:

  •  Know the names of the youth in your small group. 

  • Establish a relationship with the youth in your group. Adults are very influential at this age and can have a profound impact on a middle school youth’s spiritual and emotional development.

  • Listen to the stories of your small group members, and be willing to share your own. 

  •  Challenge the middle school youth to develop a deeper relationship and commitment to Jesus and the Catholic Church.

  •  Get to know the parents of the youth in your small group.

  •  Find Christ in the youth, and share that awareness with others.

  •  Be willing to discipline, remain positive, and find the youth minister for help if needed. - Follow your diocesan rules for Safe Environment at all times.

  • Come to Edge prepared by reading through the Edge Night in advance so you can successfully lead your group through the night’s activities.

  • Attend the annual Edge Retreat.

  •  Follow the parish’s discipline policy, and work with youth ministers if discipline issues arise. 

  • Be open to new experiences, and try things you have never tried before. Be willing to lead prayer, present to the large group, and perform in skits.

  • Be risky, silly, and goofy for the Gospel, but at the same time, remain the adult in the group. 

TEENS NEED ADULTS WHO WILL:

• Love God

• Remember their names

• Be interested in their lives

• Pray for them

• Be authentic

• Encourage and challenge them

• Believe in them

• Laugh

• Share God’s love through personal experience

• Be reliable through the ministry

• Be patient

• Enjoy life

• Strive to live the seven Core values (Love, Evangelization, Joy, Vocation, Affirmation, Authenticity, Eucharistic Spirituality)

THE THREE COMMITMENTS OF CORE MEMBERS:

CHRIST. Your first and foremost “Yes!” is to Jesus Christ, and living out your faith in Him through the teachings of our Catholic Church. This yes is what has drawn you to the parish, to the community of the Core Team, to youth ministry, and ultimately, to the teens, you are committing to drawing closer to Him.

YOUTH. Not just the youth that walks in for Edge nights, but all youth – no matter where you encounter them. In your yes to being on Core, you are saying yes to advocating for youth in any circumstance, to believing in the good in them, and believing in what Christ has in store for them. You are also committed in a special way to the youth that are participating in the Edge ministry, to being reliably present through Edge and beyond.

THE YOUTH MINISTRY. Notice that doesn’t say “Youth Minister?” You are committed to all the other Core Members, to the Pastor, to the parents, and to the youth. When you give your yes as a Core Member, you are committing to more than a program, more than a person (the youth minister), and more than a handful of youth that you might have in small group weekly. It is all of that and so much more.

SEVEN CORE VALUES OF LIFE TEEN

LOVE
“We love because He first loved us” – 1 John 4:19. We must strive in all moments and circumstances to love others as Christ loved. This foundation, simple in premise and command, serves as the basis for our ministry.

EVANGELIZATION
We speak truth to God’s people, inviting them to know Him more deeply. Driven by a desire for all to know the mercy and love of God the Father.

JOY 
We live by an unrelenting belief in the goodness of God, and in His desire not for our momentary happiness, but our everlasting life. The spirit of our Youth and Worship ministries is one of pure joy, keeping life in perspective and allowing the peace of God to reign in our hearts, regardless of what the world might bring at any given moment.

VOCATION
We maintain openness to the call of God in our lives and a willingness to discern, respond and prioritize our lives according to that call. Whether designed for the religious, married, or single life, we not only embrace the vocation we were designed for, but ensure that it remains primary, not allowing God’s work in ministry to overtake God’s call to holiness.

AFFIRMATION
We refuse to be overwhelmed by the negativity pervading our culture. Words and actions are designed by the Creator to bring life to creation, not death. We make every effort and take every opportunity to build up the Kingdom on Earth, rather than tear it down.

AUTHENTICITY
We live authentically, not denying our human weakness or shying away from the need for personal improvement, but working toward holiness, with resolve. The world needs quality examples of Catholic men and women who live out their faith. As leaders in ministry, we live our faith authentically, providing the living example of a Christian and giving hope that others, too, can follow Christ.

A EUCHARISTIC SPIRITUALITY
We seek to become one with Christ in all ways. Through a strong devotion to the Blessed Mother, we develop a more profound understanding of Jesus Christ. Through the Holy Scriptures, we grow in sanctity through the Incarnate Word. Through openness to the Charisms of the Holy Spirit, we allow God’s love to permeate this world. Through adherence to the Church that our Lord established, we act in obedience and humility. Through our frequenting of the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist in Most Holy Communion, we become one with the living God. These intimate experiences with Christ are unmistakable signs of His love.